This Man Was Underrated

Bill Summers in 1936

This Man Was Underrated

It’s amazing how quickly we forget some of the most important history lessons.

We all feel passionate about our favorite sports. It’s natural to criticize the officiating crews, especially when they miss a call that seems so obvious to us.

But we can get carried away if we’re not careful.

Like all good stories, I came across this one completely by accident. I read a blurb about it in The 1937 Spalding Base Ball Guide:

Words like these are music to my ears. I did a bit of research and found the game.

And, man, this story is tough to read.

The Sporting News has this summary, which is the most succinct:

The thing that really gets to me about this story is that Summers made the right call. Even The Chicago Tribune agreed:

This is how the Daily News in New York saw it:

As much fun as it would be to go back in time to watch a double header in which Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, and Tony Lazzeri hit home runs, I’m not sure I’d want to be part of that crowd.

The part that amazes me, though, is that Summers went on to have a great career as an umpire. You’d think an incident like this would make him rethink his chosen profession.

In fact, Summers was the umpire for one of the most famous calls in baseball history:

I think Summers got this call right, though it’s awfully close. But at least nobody threw a bottle at him for it.